As of right now, there are currently 99 operating commercial nuclear reactors at 61 nuclear power plants in the United States. However, if the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) has its way, there will be one more power plant to add to the total in northeast Alabama.
In hopes of finishing the proposed project, the TVA has set a date for an auction in order to sell the unfinished nuclear power plant in Hollywood, Alabama. The Bellefonte Nuclear Power Plant will go to a live auction on November 14 with minimum bids set at $36.4 million.
Construction for this plant started in the mid-1970s, but as the demand for nuclear power decreased, the work was never finished. In total, the highest bidder will receive 1,600 acres of land and two unfinished nuclear reactors.
The proposal to continue building this reactor site in Alabama outlines a partnership between Russia and the U.S. that would go on to build three dozen more nuclear reactors in the Middle East. This is because the Bellefonte site promises to export more than $300 billion related to the Middle Eastern nuclear plants within the next 40 years.
This plan was proposed by ACU Strategic Partners in two separate stages. The first page would be funded by sources pursued in the Middle East, and the goal would be for TVA to support the completion of Bellafonte. At the second phase, TVA would receive fees up to $1 billion annually as part of the agreement, assuming the Middle Eastern funding is available.
However, the TVA has only agreed to this proposal if the ACU can secure funding for the project.
Once Bellafonte has been completed, it will serve as a training facility for the Middle East construction project.
“Completion of Bellefonte 1 & 2 is very important to the U.S./Russian collaboration to stabilize the Middle East through nuclear power,” Alex Copson, managing director for ACU explained to AL.com. “It’s a very good training vehicle to complete those reactors.”
In addition, Copson added that this U.S./Russia partnership would go on to stabilize the Middle East by bringing a source of reputable energy into the area.
